Within the field of computing, many scenarios involve the use of a computer network, wherein computers connecting to the network are assigned a network address. In a dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP) scenario, a computer may, while joining a network, issue a request to have a network address assigned to a particular network adapter, and a server that is tasked with managing the assignment of network addresses for the network (e.g., a DHCP server) may choose a previously unassigned network address and transmit it to the computer. Moreover, the DHCP server may comprise one or more reservations that associate a particular computer (identified, e.g., according to a Media Access Control (MAC) address assigned to the hardware of a network adapter of the computer) with a particular network address, such that the computer is consistently assigned the same network address upon connecting to the network.
Additionally, each computer generates a computing environment (such as an operating system, a set of drivers configured to operate various components of the computer, and a set of running processes) by storing instructions in one or more locations in memory (e.g., system memory, a hard disk drive, a solid state storage component, and a magnetic or optical disc). It may be desirable to permit one or more computers of the network to receive and apply an image, comprising a set of instructions that, if written in particular locations in the memory of the computer, configure the computing environment in a particular manner. For example, an administrator may create a set of images, each representing the memory contents of a computer operating a particular set of hardware components (via a particular set of drivers) and having a particular operating system and set of applications or processes. In order to configure a particular computer, instead of configuring the computer in an ad hoc manner (e.g., by wiping the contents of a hard disk drive, installing an operating system and a set of drivers corresponding to the hardware components of the computer, and installing and configuring a set of applications), the administrator may simply select the appropriate image for application to the computer to achieve the same configuration, thereby reducing the involvement of the administrator in the configuration of the computer. Such techniques may be particularly advantageous, e.g., where the administrator is responsible for managing a large set of computers having a small set of configurations (such as a server farm comprising many computers having a similar set of hardware components and configured in a similar manner), such that an image may be applied to many computers to produce a consistent and easily achieved configuration of each computer.
Where a large set of computers is connected over a network, it may be advantageous to permit computers to discover and retrieve images over the network for local application. A particular technology identified as a preboot execution environment (PXE) is provided to permit a computer, upon booting, to broadcast a request over the network for a PXE server to identify the location of an image to be retrieved and applied by the computer. A PXE server located on the same network may respond to the request by identifying the location of a particular image on the network to be used by the computer, and the computer may proceed to retrieve the image and apply it as part of the boot cycle.